Two Indonesian children died of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, the World Health Organization has confirmed according to health officials. The deaths of the 13-year-old girl and her four-year-old brother bring the total number of bird flu fatalities in Indonesia to 14. More than 80 people have died since its resurgence in December 2003. Millions of chickens and ducks have died of the disease, or been culled to prevent its spread. Experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that passes easily between humans, possibly sparking a pandemic.... http://news.bbc.co.uk

The US is dispatching a team of experts to Japan to oversee US shipments of beef, in an effort to persuade Tokyo not to reimpose a total ban on imports. Japan said the ban would resume after outlawed spinal material was found in a 390kg batch of meat from New York. It came only a month after a two-year embargo on US beef - imposed over fears of BSE (mad cow disease) - was lifted. US Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns admitted an "unacceptable failure", but denied any threat to public health. He said US exports to Japan would from now on face stricter controls, and that US inspectors in Japan would scrutinise American shipments at Japanese ports. BSE was found in US cattle at the end of 2003, prompting Japan to impose the import ban. Previously, Japan was the most lucrative export market for US beef producers, and the Bush administration lobbied intensively for the ban to be dropped. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4634040.stm

Sunni Arab politicians called for a government of national unity Saturday and signaled they will use their increased numbers in parliament to curb the power of rival Shiites, who have claimed the biggest number of seats in the new legislature. Also, a U.S. Muslim advocacy group arrived in Baghdad to issue an appeal for the release of American hostage Jill Carroll, seized Jan. 7 in Baghdad. Kidnappers threatened to kill her unless all women detainees were released by Friday a deadline which passed without any releases or word on Carroll's fate. At least 11 Iraqis were killed in a spate of bombings and shootings across the country. Three policemen died in a car bombing in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, and Britain announced that a security contractor was killed in a roadside bombing....http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1529231&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312

Pakistan's president told a senior U.S. diplomat on Saturday that the two countries must work together to avoid a repeat of U.S. attacks like last week's strike on a Pakistani border village that killed civilians. President Gen. Pervez Musharraf made the remarks to visiting U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns at a meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said. “While reaffirming Pakistan's commitment to counterterrorism, the foreign minister underlined the need for the two countries to work in a manner that precludes recent incidents like Bajur,” the ministry said in a statement. “He highlighted the prevailing public sentiment and stressed that such incidents were counterproductive,” it said. ...http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/21/terror/main1227292.shtml?CMP=OTC-RSSFeed&source=RSS&attr=World_1227292

Democrats accused Republicans on Saturday of using "doublespeak" and abusing their power in order to help special interest groups. With Republicans burdened by the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said in the weekly Democratic radio address that years of controlling both the White House and Congress had corrupted the Republican Party. "There is a price to pay for this Republican abuse of power and it can be seen in the present state of our union," Reid said. "Special interests and the well-connected have been rewarded by Republicans while everyone else has been left behind." There is not an ounce of ethics in ether of these two parties and the sooner we realize that and get rid of these totally corrupt parties the better off we will be. But if you continue to support them nothing will ever change. No matter which party is in power nothing changes. And don’t say one is not as bad as the other. That’s a cop out and you know it...http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1529245

Sunni Arab politicians called for a government of national unity Saturday and signaled they will use their increased numbers in parliament to curb the power of rival Shiites, who have claimed the biggest number of seats in the new legislature. Also, a U.S. Muslim advocacy group arrived in Baghdad to issue an appeal for the release of American hostage Jill Carroll, seized Jan. 7 in Baghdad. Kidnappers threatened to kill her unless all women detainees were released by Friday — a deadline which passed without any releases or word on Carroll's fate. At least 11 Iraqis were killed in a spate of bombings and shootings across the country. Three policemen died in a car bombing in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, and Britain announced that a security contractor was killed in a roadside bombing. Five bodyguards of President Jalal Talabani also were wounded in a roadside bomb blast in northern Iraq, police said Saturday. Talabani was not with them at the time. ...http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2006-01-21-iraq_x.htm?csp=34